For once, Kageyama's dreams weren't filled with nightmares as he instead found himself dreaming about his thirteenth birthday back in the gym of his middle school. While the rest of the team had forgotten, (not that he told them or anything) Oikawa and Iwaizumi had remembered.
"Oh birthday boy, it's birthday smack time!" Oikawa laughed as he trotted over to swat at the boy until Iwaizumi shooed him away.
"Hey Trashykawa, try counting your hits next time, I think you got him a good twenty times!" Kageyama could remember the nasty bruise that had formed on his arm the next day and how Oikawa had later commented on how it looked like fish, like he was proud.
"Sorry Iwa-Chan, I just couldn't resist!" he smiled with a pinch to his kouhai's cheek before Iwaizumi could beat him away again, "sooo Iwa-Chan, did you remember the cake?"
Kageyama tilted his head in confusion as Iwaizumi motioned to the two black haired teens, Kunimi and Kindaichi, in the back of the gym until they brought over a decent- sized vanilla cake covered in chocolate flakes and candles.
"The trash king and I baked this for you. Happy birthday, Kageyama," Iwaizumi said with a soft smile that Kageyama could see Oikawa swooning to. He didn't know what to say as he stared down at the cake. He wasn't given a cake that day, but a store- bought vanilla chocolate cupcake with a small sugar volleyball atop the frosting that he ended up trying to offer to Oikawa after a practice match when he missed a serve.
He shook his head as he had a bad feeling, "ah, no, I think I'll just have some after pr-," he didn't get to finish as Oikawa shoved a fork-full of the cake into his mouth with a wide smile on his face.
"See? Isn't it good, Tobio-Chan?" he sang happily as the gym around Kageyama began to crumble away to reveal a bright, white lab-like room.
Kageyama couldn't move, he also could barely see a thing. Everything in the room had the same sterile glow that was hard to focus on for more than two seconds.
"This is just a dream. It's just a dream…," he repeated over and over until he found something that didn't burn his eyes. Appearing out of seemingly nowhere was a much younger Iwaizumi who rocked easily on his bandaged feet as he picked at his worn black tank top, an anxious smile on his face.
"Tobio, I want you to kill him," a much older man's voice sounded off from behind him.
"Wh-what? N-no, I refuse, damn it!"
It may have been a dream, but Kageyama wanted some control of the outcome. He didn't want to kill Iwaizumi again even it was just a dream. He refused to relive it.
"O-okay sir…"
His eyes widened as he heard his own voice, only younger before he watched as the child Iwaizumi fell to the floor with a thud. He was speechless even as the world began to crumble around him with the low voice of Kenma telling him to wake up.
"Come on, Kageyama. We're in Utsunomiya," Kenma spoke, nudging at Kageyama until his eyes snapped open.
True to his word, the train was stopped at the train station with a huge sign outside the window that read 'Welcome to Utsunomiya'.
"Sorry… bad dream again, I guess," though he wasn't exactly sure if it was a dream or not anymore.
Kenma didn't ask for the details as they disembarked much to his relief, however any relief he had quickly vanished when they saw who was waiting for them outside the train.
"Hey there, cuties. Did you miss me?" the snake-like man growled in a none too friendly way. His face still appeared to be irritated by the pepper spray as his skin was flaking and his eyes still showed red even as they were narrowed dangerously.
"You two may have given me the slip once but Daishou Suguru hasn't failed a mission yet!"
Showing off his inhuman fangs, he stepped forward, only to stop when Kageyama stood protectively in front of Kenma.
"You know brat, I don't want to be out here and you seem to care about that pudding head, so why don't we make a deal: you come with me back to my master, and I let Pudding Head go. He's on my kill list, so choose wisely."
Kageyama bit at his lip in consideration until Kenma buried his hand into the back of his pull over, "don't trust him… He's lying. "
He didn't argue, "no deal. We'll take our chances!"
His words didn't please Daishou as he began to vibrate in anger.
"You know, I tried to be nice, but you know what? Who gives a shit?!"
Screams of a giant snake began to fill the train station as people began to flee. Kageyama didn't understand until he heard Kenma scream too. Turning as fast as he could, he was greeted by the sight of an over- sized anaconda holding Kenma up by the collar of his sweater. While Kenma did kick at the snake, it didn't seem to care as it chucked the teen over to Daishou easily before turning its beady gaze on Kageyama, flicking his tongue almost hungrily.
"You see, you little shit, you piss me off," he hissed as he dug his fingers into Kenma's hair to bare his neck to Kageyama while his other held his thin wrists together, "you basically told me that I don't keep my word and this brat right here is in agreement. Don't think I didn't hear you two talking."
Kenma said nothing as he looked at Kageyama pleadingly. Kageyama himself was having his own issues as the anaconda kept trying to circle him. He had to be thankful that the heating in the station was only minimal. If it wasn't, he was sure he would have been in the snake's maw already.
"But I guess all that doesn't matter in the end. Pudding Head, you'll be a tasty snack for my beauty and that brat over there will be sitting pretty as my master's new trophy."
Kageyama saw red. Everything around him began to disappear except for the anaconda and Daishou's smug face that seemed to diminish when he saw Kageyama's face.
"He-Heh…," he took a step back, unable to look away from the burning navy eyes that followed his every movement, "c-c'mon move, Nohebi, get him! Make him stop looking at me!"
But the snake did nothing but lower itself in submission.
A wide, eerie smile formed on Kageyama's face as he began to move toward the snake man, "your snake's right to fear me. Put my friend down and I'll let you go slither back to your master."
When Daishou didn't move, the arm that was holding Kenma snapped, as did his right leg.
"You should have listened to me. I hate it when people don't listen," Kageyama spat as the man fell, allowing Kenma to roll away free.
With Kenma out of danger, Kageyama went in for the kill, his smile growing as he began to choke the life out of the troublesome man until he didn't see Daishou's face anymore, but Iwaizumi's disappointed one. With a small grunt of pain, his concentration snapped and Daishou fell to the concrete, panting heavily but alive.
"Wow, kid… Nngh… I-I see why my master wants you. You're a killer!" he laughed, voice scratchy as he watched the dark haired teen back away.
Tears of realization began to pour down Kageyama's face. He had almost killed again.
"K-Kageyama let's get out of here," Kenma whined when he saw the younger boy begin to deteriorate. When he didn't move, Kenma ended up dragging him away until he was able to start moving for himself.
The two didn't stop running until they were at the city limits and staring at a wide countryside that looked like it went on forever in the now dark sky. They both ended up collapsing in the grassiest field they could find.
"Where do we go from here?" Kenma panted, unconsciously trying to hide his neck from the other teen who had begun to stare at the red marks that had formed from where the snake held him.
Jumping slightly, Kageyama began to dig his hands through the pullover's pocket for the map, only to realize it wasn't there.
"Shit. Must have lost it in the fight."
"Of course. That seems like how it always works…," the blonde yawned as he pulled out his PSP, which hadn't broken much to his relief; however, its battery was another story, "well, the sun's gone. We might as well sleep."
Kageyama nodded, "I'll stay up and keep watch." It was the least he could do.
Kenma said nothing. He just curled closer to him for warmth and fell asleep. Luckily for the both of them, it wasn't that cold that night, which was the best thing that had happened to them all day.